


We still have each other

by Anonymous



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), The Avengers (Marvel Movies), The Avengers - Ambiguous Fandom
Genre: Beta Wanted, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Family Fluff, Fix-It, Fix-It of Sorts, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Injury, Irondad, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Recovery, Superfamily (Marvel), Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Whump
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-08
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2020-02-28 14:58:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,975
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18758761
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/
Summary: ENDGAME SPOILERS!You have been warnedEndgame Fix-ItPeter doesn't know what to do after Tony's gone.Happy to have Aunt May and his friends back he wishes he could carry on with his life, but he can't stop working himself up.But when he gets a call a few days later it's not a funeral invite.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Both title and summary are a work in progress, but I'm dying to post this before I'm off to work.  
> Enjoy my little Endgame Fix-It.  
> It starts pretty whumpy, but it'll get fluffier the next chapters.

The world seemed to stop existing when they took him away.  
One moment it was only him, Ms Potts and Mr Rhodes in silent unity, the next moment Peter was pushed to the ground roughly by the medics, scurrying towards Mr Stark.  
Unable to move, unable to think he remained sitting on the cold ground, curled in himself, his eyes fixated on his mentor, desperately searching for any sign of life.  
His hands were shaking as he tried to reach out, tried to hold onto something, but only grasped emptiness.  
For a moment he felt cold iron hands on his shoulder. Blond hair in the corner of his eye, a soft voice talking to him.  
But he couldn’t focus. Everything he saw was Mr Stark’s bloody face, the only sound he could process was the shrill beeping of the machine attached to his mentor, the only smell reaching his consciousness was the stench of burnt flesh and copper in the air.  
It seemed so unreal. Mr Stark’s arm being wrapped in immaculately white bandages that contrasted starkly with his broken skin caked with blood, dirt and dust.  
The Invincible Iron Man looked so small, diminished. Peaceful in a way, but still restless, even now. Peter’s heart clenched, hot tears running down his face.  
It couldn’t end like this.  
They had won, but to Peter, it felt like he had lost everything.  
Long after it was gone, the sound of the quin-jet that took Mr Stark and Ms Potts away kept ringing in his ears.  
People around him were already moving again, running around, shouting orders, trying to keep the world turning. Everything seemed to move at a faster speed. Everything seemed to rush. Like in one of those time-lapse documentaries, packing months into minutes. But his world had come to a stop. He couldn’t move, he couldn’t think, he couldn’t feel. Everything he could do was sit and stare while his whole world came crashing down around him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Pepper had called him it hadn’t been about Tony.  
It had been about the boy.  
Even though she hadn’t met the kid before, Happy could her from her breaking voice that it was killing her that she had to leave him behind to go with Tony.  
“He needs someone to be with him, Happy, please. Tony wouldn’t want the kid to be alone. Not after everything…”  
“Of course, I’m on my way.”  
No questions asked. He had a mission. He was needed. Grieving would have to wait. Now the kid needed him.  
Of course Happy would never let this side of him show, but even after those five long years, he would do anything for this kid. This kid meant the world to Tony and had grown on Happy too, faster than he would’ve liked to admit.

Even though he disregarded every tempo limit and cut several red lights it took an eternity to get to the compound. Well, to what was left of it. The whole country was in disarray, people returning from the dust, searching for their loved ones. Celebrations being held in the street, word had already gotten around that the Avengers had saved the day.  
But Happy didn’t let his thoughts wander to ‘What exactly had happened there?’. The kid needed him and until then he had to force himself to lock away all thoughts circling around this question and Around the phone call from Pepper.

It must have been at least two hours since said phone call, but Happy found Peter in the exact same spot that Pepper had described to him.  
He would have missed him, the tiny red figure, covered with dirt and soot, blending in with the ground, if it hadn’t been for the government agents that hovered around him, keeping a distance to the kid.  
As he got closer the reason became clear. The suit’s extra limbs were still extended, slowly moving around the boy, following the agents around him, always ready to stab. He couldn’t see the kids face, but he was sure he would see the suit’s lenses in a glowing red, indicating that instant kill was still active.  
“Let me through!”  
A black gloved hand held him back.  
“Spider-Man is in shock. I wouldn’t get closer, his weapons are still active. I don’t think he can control them.”  
“Let me through!” Happy insisted. “I know the kid, I know what I’m doing.”  
The agent hesitated but finally let him go. “Everything at your own risk,” he said and shrugged, but not without empathy on his face.  
Slowly, carefully not to startle the boy Happy approached him.  
“Karen! Deactivate Instant Kill.”  
He couldn’t hear the AI’s response as the mask was buried somewhere beneath Peter’s shaking body, but the spider limbs retracted, leaving Peter unprotected looking even smaller.  
“Hey kid, it’s me.” He sat down heavily beside him, softly putting his hand on the kid’s skinny back evoking a pained whimper.  
“Shit, sorry! Are you hurt?” He pulled back his hand, trying to get a read on the kid without being able to see his face.  
The kid moaned in response. It sounded pained and breathless.  
It took a while for Happy to notice that the kid was whispering to himself.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone.”  
It was like a lifeline. A mantra that kept him grounded. That stopped him from floating away, from losing his grip on reality.  
He remembered having screamed the words at the beginning causing everyone around him to still, but the spider limbs wouldn’t let anyone come near him and he was glad.  
With time his screams had died down to a hoarse whisper, but he couldn’t get himself to stop.  
It felt like ages until reality came back to him.  
First, he only registered the faint tugging of the IronSpider’s limbs retracting, then there was a hand on his back and a familiar voice talking to him. He whimpered. He wanted to snap out of it, say something, but that meant he had to move, to interact and as long as he stayed still it wasn’t real. It didn’t happen.  
But even as the touching stopped, the voice stayed persistent.  
“Kid? Talk to me? Are you hurt?”  
Everywhere. His whole body, his whole mind.  
“Kid? Peter? I need you to talk to me! I need to know you’re okay.”  
“He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone. He’s gone! He’s gone! HE’S GONE!”  
His voice grew again, first to whine, then he was screaming again, pressing his hands on his ears, his body rocking back and forth and back and forth.  
And he was suffocating, drowning, hurting.  
No air, only pain. No room for anything but red hot pain.  
And suddenly it was gone.  
Suddenly the unbearably cold that had seeped into his bones was replaced by warmth.  
He was no longer rocking, rather being cradled. Arms wrapped around him, a soothing voice talking to him in words he couldn’t comprehend.  
Finally, his chanting stopped. Air filled his lungs, all the feelings that had been blocked out by the pain rushed back to him.  
“It’s okay, kid. I’m here! I got you!”  
“Happy?”  
Safe, warm, family.  
“Yeah kid, it’s me.”  
Even though his head was buried in the man’s chest he could hear the tears in Happy’s voice.  
“Damn kid, I’m so glad you’re back. It wasn’t the same without you.”  
Through all the tears, the pain, the despair Peter couldn’t help but smile.

But their moment of consolation was brief as Happy pulled away to look at the kid.  
Peter was now shaking, only partly because of the cold. His eyes were bloodshot, his face covered in dirt and blood.  
“Come on, kid. Let’s get you home.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reception of chapter 1 has swept me of my feet. Thank you to everyone who commented, left a kudo, subscribed to or bookmarked my work.  
> Chapter 2 is still very whump heavy, be warned. But we'll get to the fluff part soon!

May Parker had spent five long years waiting for her nephew to come home.  
After losing Mary and Richard and Ben she had refused to give up on the hope that Peter would come back to her eventually.  
She would have been utterly lost without clinging onto this last thread of sanity.  
It didn’t matter that Tony Stark himself had come to her doorstep, tears in his eyes, falling on his knees, apologizing over and over for not having been able to save him.  
It hadn’t mattered that he had told her how hopeless the situation was, that it was highly improbable for Peter to come back home even if somehow Thanos’ snap could be reversed.  
The only thing that had mattered that he hadn’t said it was impossible. Only improbable.  
So she refused to give up, so she kept hoping, kept praying.

May Parker had spent five long years drowning in guilt.  
‘What if’s had kept playing through her head day after day, during all of her sleepless nights.  
What if she had taken the suit away from Peter right after she had found out about his… ‘hobby’.  
What if she slammed the door into Tony Starks face the first time he had tried to set foot into their apartment.  
What if, what if, what if.  
Rationally she knew that she had had little to do with what had happened with Thanos. That she, May Parker, an ordinary nurse from Queens, could have done nothing to save half of the world from turning into dust.  
But nevertheless, these thoughts hadn’t let her come to peace.

Five years later, on a Wednesday to be exact, at nearly midnight, these five long years came to an end as a soft knock on the apartment door made her abandon the book she was reading before going to sleep.

Nothing unusual so far, her neighbour kept forgetting her key, asking her for the spare he left with her every few days when she was just about to go to bed.  
“I swear, Joe, this is the last time you’re keeping me awake at this time.” She cursed before even opening the door and went to get Joe’s key from the kitchen.  
With exaggerated movements, she threw the door open.

The key clattered onto the floor loudly as she fell to her knees, covering her mouth in her hands with disbelief.  
After five long years, her nephew stood finally in front of her.  
Dirty and bruised, but very much alive.  
There was so much to say, so much to ask, but her mind was blank.  
“Oh, my baby! I’ve got my baby back!” she finally managed to sob.  
Without getting up she pulled Peter down on her lap, hugging him tightly, cradling his head to her chest.  
“You’re back! You’re alive.”  
Only now she noticed Happy awkwardly standing a few meters back in the hallway, tears in his eyes from watching their reunion.  
“Thank you! Thank you for bringing me my baby back”, she whispered. Too quietly for Happy to hear, but he seemed to understand and nodded with a smile on his lips.  
She laughed under her sobs and kept running her finger through the curly hair she had missed so much.  
Peter was curled tightly into himself into her lap, latching onto her shirt with both hands, twisting the fabric in his fingers. He was sobbing quietly into her shoulder, his body coiled tight.  
“It’s okay, you’re home.” She rubbed soothing circles over his back, breathing slowly for him to mimic, but the tears kept flowing.

“He didn’t make it Aunt May”, finally he spoke, but his voice sounded small, like a little child, not like a fifteen-year-old kid.  
May hesitated – waiting for Peter to continue, but nothing came.  
Seeking an explanation she looked at Happy expectantly, who had bowed his head respectfully and looked at his shoes.  
“Who, Peter?”  
She hated to ask him that, but she needed to know, to have her suspicion confirmed.  
“Mr Stark.” She wouldn’t have understood his words that came out more like a whine if she hadn’t been dreading it.  
“I’m so sorry, baby, I know how much he meant to you.”  
Soothingly she cradled him in her arms.  
“Just let is out, baby. I’m here if you want to talk about it, but you don’t have to.”  
He nodded into her shoulder.  
“I’m so sorry for everything, Aunt May.”  
“It’s okay, honey. Everything is okay.”  
She didn’t even know what he was apologizing for but didn’t want to risk upsetting him any further.  
Carefully she pushed him away so she could look at his red, bleary face and tucked some stray curls behind his ears.  
She remembered exactly, the last morning with Peter, all those years ago, how she had joked about how long his hair was getting.   
Tears started running over her cheeks again.  
She couldn’t express how much she had missed her Peter. How grateful she was to have him back.  
If only she could take all his pain away. If only she could erase the last five years, bring Tony Stark back to life…  
But she was only good old Aunt May.  
No superpowers, no special tricks up her sleeve.

She sighed and kissed the bloodstained temple of her nephew.  
“Come on, sweetheart. I bet you had a long day. Let’s get you cleaned up and to bed.  
Rest, recharge and we’ll tackle everything tomorrow. Together.  
Peter managed to nod but stayed limp in her arms.  
“Come on, up!”  
She levered him from her lap and tried to pull him up, swaying dangerously under Peter’s weight who either didn’t notice or didn’t care.  
All spirits seemed to have left him. Even his sobs had died down.

This time Happy came to help, carefully supporting Peter’s back, trying to get him to walk. He ended up half carrying the kid inside.  
“I don’t think we’ll be able to get him under the shower like this. Where’s his bedroom?”  
Right, Happy had never actually been inside there apartment.  
May lead the way and opened Peter’s bedroom door, beckoning the both of them in.  
She had left it exactly as it was, not wanting to change anything in case Peter came back. So she always made sure to keep the room clean and nice, just in case. Now she was glad to have done that as she watched Happy carefully lower Peter onto the freshly washed linens.  
As soon as he was put, Happy retreated with a quiet “I’ll be waiting outside”, giving them the space they needed.

May sat tucked the blanket around Peter and sat down on the side of his bed.  
He looked so young, so vulnerable, looking at her from his big, round eyes.  
The whole scene reminded her of when he was little.  
She had had to sing a lullaby every night after Ben was done reading him a bedtime story. Even the soft orange nightlight from Peter’s childhood still was in its place, giving a calming atmosphere to the room.  
“I’m so glad you’re home, baby. I’ve missed you so much.”  
Peter tried to smile, but the expression didn’t reach his eyes that had already seen way to much.  
“Sleep tight, things will look different tomorrow”, May promised.  
“I love you, baby!”  
She kissed his scalp and caressed his cheek.  
Her presence and her soft words seemed to finally calm him enough to let him sink into a restless sleep.  
With a sigh May pressed another kiss on his forehead and left to join Happy in the living room, leaving the door open, just enough to be able to see his sleeping face through the gap.  
She wouldn’t know what to do if she lost him again.  
She only knew that it would be the end of her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“I… I don’t know what to say. I’m so sorry, Mr Hogan”, May said as she entered the living room, carrying two glasses of whiskey.  
“Thank you. But please, call me Happy”, he offered and gratefully took his glass.  
May nodded and made herself comfortable on the armchair opposite the couch Happy was sitting in, nursing her own glass.  
“What happened?”  
Happy only shrugged helplessly.  
“I honestly don’t know. Tony… he went on a mission, a few days back. Something about time travel, going back, making everything undone… That’s everything I knew about the whole thing. Until Pepper – Tony’s wife – called me to say that he hadn’t made it. That she needed me to come and get the kid.”  
May had tears in her eyes again.  
“Thank you so much. You brought me my kid back.”  
She could swear Happy blushed as he smiled at her.  
“The least I could do. He’s an awesome kid.”  
May laughed under her tears. “Don’t I know it. I always had the feeling I’m not good enough for him.”  
Happy shook his head.  
“Nonsense. You’re the reason the kid’s as great as he is. You raised him. And may I say: you raised him right.”  
“Thank you. Really. For everything.”  
For a while they sat in silence, drinking and contemplating, both happy not to be alone, just enjoying each other’s company.

Just as May thought about asking Happy to leave so she could call it a night the shrill sound of his phone disturbed the quiet.  
Both of them startled, their glances immediately wandering to Peter’s room, but the kid was to beat to wake up.  
‘Pepper’ kept flashing on the screen of the now mute phone, making guilt rise inside of Happy. He quickly pushed himself to his feet and returned his glass to the coffee table.  
“I’m sorry, I have to go. Work is calling.”  
May nodded, staying put as she watched him hurry out the door. He stopped when he was outside to turn around and carefully closing the door, making sure the boy didn’t wake up.  
After a minute, May got up, locked the front door, tucked the duvet around her nephew again and went to bed.  
For the first time in five years, she slept soundly, knowing that Peter was safe.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again for reading, please leave some feedback, I'd love to know your thoughts.  
> I've been really excited to write interaction between Happy and May. I don't exactly ship them, but I think they would be good friends, both caring about Peter so much.  
> I'm curious how their relationship will develop in Far From Home.
> 
> Next chapter will probably be dealing with Pepper and Tony, switching perspective, but I don't have it planned out yet, so anyhing could happen.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear your thoughts.  
> Next chapter will focus on Peter and Aunt May's reunion.


End file.
